Paladin Advisory Group LLC Reduces Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Paladin Advisory Group LLC reduced its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 11.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,868 shares of the company’s stock after selling 249 shares during the period. Paladin Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $186,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $136.00 to $105.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.67.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.8 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $98.19 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $99.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $108.13. The firm has a market cap of $248.39 billion, a PE ratio of 20.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.48 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.